By Dylan Vazzano, Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech soccer team will tie a ribbon on its season-long three-match road trip Sunday afternoon, hooking up with Austin Peay for a 1 p.m. CT start time in Clarksville. Tech's lengthiest road trip since 2014 saw the Golden Eagles (6-5-2, 2-1-1) tie Morehead State last Sunday, before falling 1-0 at Murray State on Wednesday.
TTU's affair with the Racers marked Tech's first Wednesday match since 2010, a double-overtime battle with Louisiana Tech in Cookeville. Wednesday's tilt was TTU's first OVC loss of 2016 after the Golden Eagles knocked off Jacksonville State (Sep. 23) and Belmont (Sep. 25), before last Sunday's 1-1 deadlock at Morehead.
Scoreless into intermission, Murray State took the lead early in the second half on an Ali Critcher goal in the 53rd minute, the senior's first of the year. Tech was unable to provide the equalizer, scratching across seven shots over the course of 90 minutes, four of which were on-goal.
TTU did continue a promising first-half trend as the Golden Eagles have now shutout an opponent in the first period in 12 of their 13 matches this season. Overall, Tech's defense has been stellar throughout the season, ranking in the top three in the OVC in goals allowed (11), goals against average (0.81) and shutouts (5).
Austin Peay (8-4-1, 3-0-1) currently sits in second-place in the conference and is one of two teams in the league without a loss in OVC action (Murray State). The Govs are coming off a 1-0 shutout win over Eastern Kentucky Thursday evening, snapping the Colonels' eight-match winning streak, the third longest in the country.
The APSU victory featured its fair share of dramatics as the Governors found the back of the net in the 88th minute to break the 0-0 knot, using a Pamela Penaloza goal that originated off a corner. The goal was the first allowed by Eastern Kentucky since Sep. 4, snapping a string of five consecutive shutouts and 549 minutes of action.
Austin Peay is tied for first in the conference with 23 goals in 13 matches, paced by junior Kristin Robertson's OVC-leading 10.
Tech has the upper hand in the all-time series with the Govs, 9-4-1, which includes last year's thrilling double-overtime victory on Oct. 15. Junior Karigan Owens blasted a free kick from 35 yards out in the second extra session that split the pipes to push the Golden Eagles to a 2-1 win.
Photo by Jim Dillon
